More by Ashleigh

There’s no doubt cell phones have made life infinitely easier, but one man realized just how helpful they can be when an HTC smartphone saved his life.

Early Monday morning, a gas station clerk was aiding a customer in finding a specific drink when the customer pulled a gun and demanded that the clerk open the safe. The clerk was unable to do so, and a second clerk was given the same instruction. Neither clerk was able to unlock the safe and the gunman left, but not before firing off a single shot.

Police were immediately called to the Hess gas station in Winter Garden, Florida. While they were interviewing the clerk to gather information, he complained of chest pains. Until then, no one noticed that he had been shot. According to police accounts, he survived the attempted armed robbery thanks in part to his cell phone, which was stashed in his chest pocket.

“So they started looking at the clerk. That’s when they realized that the guy had actually shot at him, hit him, struck his cell phone, and the cell phone had stopped his bullet,” Winter Garden Police Lt. Scott Allen told WESH, the local NBC affiliate.

The clerk was taken to the hospital, but was quickly released with no injuries. The chest pain he complained of was due to the blunt force of the bullet hitting the phone. His HTC smartphone, however, didn’t fare so well. The screen is shattered and bullet is lodged into the phone. The other clerk was not harmed.

“I’ve seen individuals get shot with low-caliber handguns and I’ve seen it be life ending. So, for this gentleman to be as lucky as he is, it’s a good day for us,” Allen said.

This isn’t the first time an HTC phone has saved a man’s life from a bullet. In 2011, a valet at an Atlanta night club was shot by two men. According to the Associated Press, one of the bullets may have done some serious damage had it not been stopped by the man’s HTC, also located in his chest pocket Reports from this case indicate that the phone’s battery kept the bullet from doing any harm.